Two Pigs Heads Left Outside Blackburn Muslim School

Two pigs heads have been left outside a Muslim school in Lancashire in what has been described as a “show of hate”.

One of the heads was left by the gates of Markazul Uloom boarding school in Blackburn, while the other was thrown over the walls some time between Friday night and Saturday morning.

Lancashire Police said the incident is being treated as a “hate crime”.

Abdul Hamid Qureshi, chairman of the Lancashire Council of Mosques, said the act was “a provocation” and “a crime”.

Chief Inspector Sheena Tattum said police were searching through CCTV and the matter was being treated “extremely seriously”.

Eating pork is forbidden in Islam.

Mr Qureshi said: “These are not people who have done any harm to anybody.”

“It is a show of hate, in a sense.”

One head was thrown over the fence of Markazul Uloom boarding school in Blackburn, while another was found by the school gates.

They are believed to have been left between 5pm on Friday 18 and 8.30am on Saturday, when police were called.

Eating pork is forbidden in Islam.

Chief Inspector Sheena Tattum, of Blackburn Police,told the Lancashire Evening Post: “This is being treated extremely seriously and we understand the concern that incidents like this, while thankfully rare, can cause in the community.

“An investigation is underway to identify those responsible and a team of detectives are carrying out numerous inquiries.”

She added: “We have carried out house to house inquiries in the area and done a search through CCTV and we would appeal for anyone who has any information which could assist the investigation to get in touch with us.”